I’m still trying to figure out what it means to be human. Not in the sense that I’m trying to figure out who I am or where my passions lie. No, career and jobs and money and material possessions matter so little in the end; we all know that, despite some of us striving after them without relent. The question really is: what’s the purpose of our species, when there are so many of us who are cruel and abusive to one another, animals, and even the planet? Deepak Chopra once said that the aspect of humanity that is truly unique and interesting is that we have the divine and diabolical within us. So there’s the potential for timeless art to come from our hands, the ability to create music that appeals to us even centuries after it’s been written, even the minds to write about love and beauty in ways that are works of art in themselves. And then there’s the potential for heinous cruelty; for shooting a dog in both eyes and leaving him to die, for force-feeding chemicals to cats, for hunting and killing wolves and elk by making excuses from their “overpopulation” or eating of our vegetation, for drilling into the Earth for natural gas with no regard for the consequences, or for tearing into mountains for gems. All of these examples are real cases, ongoing cases, of destruction caused by humans. There are those humans who use their imaginations to destroy instead of create because they decided to put a price tag on the resources of the planet and the animals we are blessed to share it with. I fit into the puzzle because I am human, and yet I feel so unlike a human because I cannot identify or agree with most of what we do.
I can only conclude that the evil ones, and the ones driven by money and status, are missing out. They are driven by man-made societal norms (the big house, the expensive car, the 6-figure salary, the fancy title, etc.). I wonder. Do they love so dangerously that it can drive them mad; that they can put all of their heart and soul into loving another, much like Petrarch would write in his sonnets? Can they look into another being’s eyes and see the whole universe inside them, the dark blue or black of the pupil reflecting the backdrop of the stars? Can they derive any amount of peace or inspiration from as simple a scene as birds adrift in flight? Do they comprehend the energy inherent in all the things on this planet, from the stones to the trees? I say they cannot, they must not. Because if they did, the animals wouldn’t be skinned alive or electrocuted through the anus for their fur to line a coat on a designer runway for Fashion Week. If they did, the mountains would be revered, not torn apart to build “McMansions” upon. If they had a glimmer of true awakening, they wouldn’t dare take another bite of flesh from another animal, nor use chemicals to control the harvest whilst killing birds or rodents or ungulates. The rhinos wouldn’t have gone extinct because humans need their horns to sell for money. Superstitions and ancient so-called medicines would not dictate that an animal should be killed for its parts, as in the Asian tiger trade. No, instead humans would appreciate the land that gives life. The skies would be clear of pollution and the rains wouldn’t be acidic. The water sources wouldn’t be tainted or dried up. Instead, we would farm the land with the reverence it deserves and requires. We would understand how to work with the cycles of the natural world and wouldn’t crave more than we need.
In our expanding first-world, we have created so many material comforts and medical advancements that we should be proud of and we should share. And yet, with these accomplishments have come sins of excess, of throwing away, of closed-mindedness and selfishness, taking more than what we need simply for the sake of saying we have it. It’s an addiction that is so hard to cure. I live within this world, and I fight these addictions, too. And I know when I am truly happy, and I realize that the outside world, with its finances and taxation and “made in China” goods and big business will not let me rest.
Humanity could have had it like the other beings of this Earth. We could have truly “inherited the Earth” as we were supposed to, and used it in an unselfish manner that bred life instead of death. Instead, we chose the ruling class, the upper class, the politics, the economy, the social dictation of right and wrong, the classrooms, and the organized religions. Instead of freedom, we chose bondage within the confines of groups, races, classes, beliefs. We separated ourselves from one another and from the planet and its gifts. And the ones, like myself, who awake from the dream of illusions, struggle against those still forcing their way to the top that doesn’t exist. And the ones like me look on and question, wonder, imagine what could’ve been. We face adversity, judgments, and isolation, and yet we find an even greater connection than could be imagined with all else, from the spiritual to the animal to the elements. For us---the disillusioned, the lovers, the ones who ignore those diabolical inclinations that make us human---the Earth protects us and the animals are kin. Nor do we struggle to be better than the next guy, we just simply want to make our way. And I suppose that I have thus answered my own question, for that is what it means to be human. And though there are few of us amidst the drones that think they represent what this animal we are should be, we are the ones who have been blessed with true wisdom and inner peace, disrupted only by the need to help others achieve the same realization.
- Lisa Selvaggio
Monday, November 28, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Solutions
Most of the time, when you’re an animal rights advocate, you find yourself feeling very discouraged and helpless. It always seems like there is more work to do but not enough people to do it, and it’s especially hard when you want to help but can’t for whatever reason. In the end, though, there are solutions to many of the problems faced by people in the animal rights movement. Implementing these solutions is the struggle. The reason for the struggle is usually attributed to lack of support from legislators, and too many animal-abusing corporations lobbying and pretty much buying their way into laws that support what they do and disregard the efforts of the good people who are fighting for those who have no voice.
The first step for anyone who cares about animals is pretty obvious, and that is to become vegan, avoiding all or as many animal products as possible. This doesn’t just mean not eating meat and dairy products. Being vegan goes far beyond that, into purchasing goods that were not tested on animals and contain no animal by-products. It’s a lot of hard work, with research and budgeting, at first, to figure out how to replace everything from your kitchen cabinet to your medicine cabinet, but in the end, you know that you’re purchasing products that aren’t just better for the animals, but better for you and the planet on a whole. Yet, there are plenty of people who support animal rights and don’t have the wherewithal to go vegan. I could go into all the excuses I’ve heard, all the misinformation that people have absorbed and taken as gospel. These people may support conservation of certain wild animals, or they may volunteer in an animal shelter, and that’s wonderful, but they could take their activism a giant leap forward by going vegetarian, if not vegan. At that point, in their daily actions, they would be contributing to the lives of all animals, from those that are farmed to those that are affected by the environmental destruction caused by factory farms, to those dogs, cats, primates, etc. that are tested on in research labs, and those animals used for entertainment in circuses, for example. Going vegan is the first step in ending the suffering and exploitation of animals around the globe. Being vegan doesn’t stop at saving some species; it saves all species. A ¼ cup serving of red lentils contains 13 grams of protein. A ½ cup of black beans contains 15% of your DV for iron. Supplements and fortified foods provide Vitamin B12. Pursued correctly, a vegan diet can provide far greater benefits than an omnivorous one. Once we get rid of the misinformation that’s been put out there by the profit-hungry meat and dairy lobbies, more people will see even more reason to go vegan.
But what I really want to focus on in this article is a solution to the overpopulation of dogs and cats in shelters across the nation, and around the world. Every year, millions of animals are euthanized in kill shelters just in the U.S., and it seems like every few weeks, a new headline appears that exposes these shelters’ cruel, unsanitary, inhumane practices, often involving workers doing horrendous things like using a kitten as target practice. Going vegan won’t solve this problem, unfortunately. Much more needs to be done for these animals.
With a degree in Business, a certification in Non-Profit Management, and a genuinely entrepreneurial spirit, I would love to find my way into a career that has me working with animals in a shelter. Problem is, I don’t have the strength in my heart to work in a government-funded kill shelter. I firmly believe that you need to have a cold heart to work in those kinds of places, and that is probably why so many stories of abuse and ill treatment abound from these pseudo-shelters. I will never discount, however, the genuine people who work at kill shelters and who post about urgent animals on social networking sites in order to coordinate rescue before the animals are killed. Healthy, vibrant creatures are put down every day, oftentimes for no reason other than lack of space. Kittens that aren’t yet weaned are put to sleep along with their mothers, and pregnant dogs and cats are seen as a burden and euthanized, never given a second chance. Decisions are made to put down an animal if s/he merely catches a cold, easily cured by some antibiotics. It seems that any excuse to euthanize is used. Yet the public, perhaps ignorant to all of this, continues to surrender animals, whether their own pets they no longer care for or strays off the streets, to kill shelters, where they are most likely doomed to die. Better they had stayed on the streets, wouldn’t you say?
Although there are no-kill shelters and a growing movement towards a no-kill society, these smaller shelters tend to run solely on a few dedicated volunteers and donations. What you’ll often find is that no-kill shelters don’t have enough money, especially these days, to rent a brick-and-mortar location. Even the ones that are lucky enough to find space to house their animals don’t always have paid employees. But these are the true shelters, the havens until these animals find their forever homes, and sometimes the homes of animals who cannot find adopters. Some animals spend their entire lives in these places, thanks to the love and consideration of the people who implement these no-kill policies. Given love, freedom time outside cages, and adequate nutrition and socialization, these animals are able to comfortably live their lives at these shelters, for as long as necessary. But we need more of them, a lot more. We can’t just convert the kill shelters into no-kills because disaster will ensue when these places become overpopulated (and possibly unsanitary and inhumane all over again) and too many animals would then need to be turned away. So we need more facilities, more places people can bring animals to be sheltered and cared for indefinitely in the most humane ways.
Would it be possible to change the ways of our society and convert all the kill shelters into no-kill facilities? Would it be possible to take the funding provided to kill shelters and put it towards no-kill environments? Can we get more government funding to open more no-kill shelters? Can we funnel more funding toward small non-profit businesses, and less money and bailouts toward banks and corporations? Can we actually create jobs by employing workers in these new no-kill shelters, screening them more stringently while providing more oversight for the welfare of the animals? Is it possible for our government to step in for once in favor of the animals and not against them? Can we help our economy by creating jobs for individuals—there are so many out there—who want to work in animal care? These are possible solutions, just ideas. Again, the hardest part is making the changes.
Trap-Neuter-Return also works. Colonies of feral cats are able to live out their lives after being spayed and neutered, and there’s no need to take them to shelters to be killed after a few weeks, or days, even. Before cats were domesticated, they were wild. Opponents say TNR works at the detriment of wild bird populations. But what if we provided wild birds with more nesting places, more trees, maybe put some food out for them, provide them with more habitat since we take so much away? Small, manageable cat colonies that will eventually die away because they’ve been neutered cannot compare to the destruction caused by humans, with their towering buildings of glass that lead to deadly collisions, for example, or the pollution of land and water with pesticides and herbicides.
Yet another problem that leads to the overpopulation of domesticated animals is people who breed their pets for profits. It is certainly bad enough that breeding mills haven’t yet been made illegal. Can we get stronger laws in place that will require pet owners to spay/neuter their pets to avoid so much breeding, especially the accidental breeding that leads people to dump the animals they don’t want to care for? Can we also entice the public to adopt instead of buy animals from pet stores that are supplied by mills by telling them about all the purebreds they crave being available in shelters too?
John Lennon used to say, “There are no problems, only solutions.” This article serves up some of my ideas, however small or grandiose. However theoretical, who knows, maybe they’ll be possible one day, if we all work on them together. What are your ideas for saving the lives of more animals? Let’s work together to actually do something. Scholars have said for centuries that humanity must evolve towards a way of life that does not involve consuming or controlling animals. How much longer must we all wait? But what can we all do in the meantime?
- Lisa Selvaggio
The first step for anyone who cares about animals is pretty obvious, and that is to become vegan, avoiding all or as many animal products as possible. This doesn’t just mean not eating meat and dairy products. Being vegan goes far beyond that, into purchasing goods that were not tested on animals and contain no animal by-products. It’s a lot of hard work, with research and budgeting, at first, to figure out how to replace everything from your kitchen cabinet to your medicine cabinet, but in the end, you know that you’re purchasing products that aren’t just better for the animals, but better for you and the planet on a whole. Yet, there are plenty of people who support animal rights and don’t have the wherewithal to go vegan. I could go into all the excuses I’ve heard, all the misinformation that people have absorbed and taken as gospel. These people may support conservation of certain wild animals, or they may volunteer in an animal shelter, and that’s wonderful, but they could take their activism a giant leap forward by going vegetarian, if not vegan. At that point, in their daily actions, they would be contributing to the lives of all animals, from those that are farmed to those that are affected by the environmental destruction caused by factory farms, to those dogs, cats, primates, etc. that are tested on in research labs, and those animals used for entertainment in circuses, for example. Going vegan is the first step in ending the suffering and exploitation of animals around the globe. Being vegan doesn’t stop at saving some species; it saves all species. A ¼ cup serving of red lentils contains 13 grams of protein. A ½ cup of black beans contains 15% of your DV for iron. Supplements and fortified foods provide Vitamin B12. Pursued correctly, a vegan diet can provide far greater benefits than an omnivorous one. Once we get rid of the misinformation that’s been put out there by the profit-hungry meat and dairy lobbies, more people will see even more reason to go vegan.
But what I really want to focus on in this article is a solution to the overpopulation of dogs and cats in shelters across the nation, and around the world. Every year, millions of animals are euthanized in kill shelters just in the U.S., and it seems like every few weeks, a new headline appears that exposes these shelters’ cruel, unsanitary, inhumane practices, often involving workers doing horrendous things like using a kitten as target practice. Going vegan won’t solve this problem, unfortunately. Much more needs to be done for these animals.
With a degree in Business, a certification in Non-Profit Management, and a genuinely entrepreneurial spirit, I would love to find my way into a career that has me working with animals in a shelter. Problem is, I don’t have the strength in my heart to work in a government-funded kill shelter. I firmly believe that you need to have a cold heart to work in those kinds of places, and that is probably why so many stories of abuse and ill treatment abound from these pseudo-shelters. I will never discount, however, the genuine people who work at kill shelters and who post about urgent animals on social networking sites in order to coordinate rescue before the animals are killed. Healthy, vibrant creatures are put down every day, oftentimes for no reason other than lack of space. Kittens that aren’t yet weaned are put to sleep along with their mothers, and pregnant dogs and cats are seen as a burden and euthanized, never given a second chance. Decisions are made to put down an animal if s/he merely catches a cold, easily cured by some antibiotics. It seems that any excuse to euthanize is used. Yet the public, perhaps ignorant to all of this, continues to surrender animals, whether their own pets they no longer care for or strays off the streets, to kill shelters, where they are most likely doomed to die. Better they had stayed on the streets, wouldn’t you say?
Although there are no-kill shelters and a growing movement towards a no-kill society, these smaller shelters tend to run solely on a few dedicated volunteers and donations. What you’ll often find is that no-kill shelters don’t have enough money, especially these days, to rent a brick-and-mortar location. Even the ones that are lucky enough to find space to house their animals don’t always have paid employees. But these are the true shelters, the havens until these animals find their forever homes, and sometimes the homes of animals who cannot find adopters. Some animals spend their entire lives in these places, thanks to the love and consideration of the people who implement these no-kill policies. Given love, freedom time outside cages, and adequate nutrition and socialization, these animals are able to comfortably live their lives at these shelters, for as long as necessary. But we need more of them, a lot more. We can’t just convert the kill shelters into no-kills because disaster will ensue when these places become overpopulated (and possibly unsanitary and inhumane all over again) and too many animals would then need to be turned away. So we need more facilities, more places people can bring animals to be sheltered and cared for indefinitely in the most humane ways.
Would it be possible to change the ways of our society and convert all the kill shelters into no-kill facilities? Would it be possible to take the funding provided to kill shelters and put it towards no-kill environments? Can we get more government funding to open more no-kill shelters? Can we funnel more funding toward small non-profit businesses, and less money and bailouts toward banks and corporations? Can we actually create jobs by employing workers in these new no-kill shelters, screening them more stringently while providing more oversight for the welfare of the animals? Is it possible for our government to step in for once in favor of the animals and not against them? Can we help our economy by creating jobs for individuals—there are so many out there—who want to work in animal care? These are possible solutions, just ideas. Again, the hardest part is making the changes.
Trap-Neuter-Return also works. Colonies of feral cats are able to live out their lives after being spayed and neutered, and there’s no need to take them to shelters to be killed after a few weeks, or days, even. Before cats were domesticated, they were wild. Opponents say TNR works at the detriment of wild bird populations. But what if we provided wild birds with more nesting places, more trees, maybe put some food out for them, provide them with more habitat since we take so much away? Small, manageable cat colonies that will eventually die away because they’ve been neutered cannot compare to the destruction caused by humans, with their towering buildings of glass that lead to deadly collisions, for example, or the pollution of land and water with pesticides and herbicides.
Yet another problem that leads to the overpopulation of domesticated animals is people who breed their pets for profits. It is certainly bad enough that breeding mills haven’t yet been made illegal. Can we get stronger laws in place that will require pet owners to spay/neuter their pets to avoid so much breeding, especially the accidental breeding that leads people to dump the animals they don’t want to care for? Can we also entice the public to adopt instead of buy animals from pet stores that are supplied by mills by telling them about all the purebreds they crave being available in shelters too?
John Lennon used to say, “There are no problems, only solutions.” This article serves up some of my ideas, however small or grandiose. However theoretical, who knows, maybe they’ll be possible one day, if we all work on them together. What are your ideas for saving the lives of more animals? Let’s work together to actually do something. Scholars have said for centuries that humanity must evolve towards a way of life that does not involve consuming or controlling animals. How much longer must we all wait? But what can we all do in the meantime?
- Lisa Selvaggio
Friday, June 24, 2011
Sealing My Philosophy
Images of seals beaten to death—hooks in their skin, clubs to their skulls until they collapse in on themselves—are strewn about the social networking pages in hopes of spreading awareness. Herds of seals cornered, away from the sea, surrounded by ruthless humans, awaiting their slaughter with no escape. The blood pours and covers the ground. Age is not significant, but the young are sometimes targeted in particular. This is the seal hunt. And it doesn’t just happen in Canada. This is the ritual slaughter of harmless, sentient creatures. For fur. For things like supposed performance enhancers. For no good reason at all except the selfishness and heartlessness of humanity.
And the seal numbers dwindle. So what comes next? What comes after we have exhausted the population until it is no more? What will we target, for our fashion, for our superstitions? In the meantime, the animals are used as products of a “free market,” treated as though their skin doesn’t feel the pain of the hook blade piercing through one end and out the other; as if their brains cannot comprehend death, nor their nervous systems the fear; treated as if their blood is not like the blood of a human’s, piping through an intricate system of organs and tissue to sustain the body that, in many ways, exceeds the abilities of humans. The pup is picked up, slammed to the ground until it is unconscious, clubbed until the spirit leaves the vessel behind. Hundreds of thousands at a time.
Yet, people wonder why we treat one another with such hatred, why there’s so much negativity in this world, why we cannot find peace, why our lives continue to get harder, why the animals fear us, why the environment is struggling to sustain us. It is because we find it necessary to dominate, not just the planet, not just the wild, but each other. Sexism, racism, speciesism are all connected, even though some people will argue that they’re not. They’re all connected because they all boil down to the same common notion that, although we are all equal—just spirits or energies taking on different bodily forms upon this plane of existence—we are different, and one gender is better than the other, or one race is stronger than another, or one animal is less deserving of life than another.
In the end, no matter what form of life your spirit chose to manifest in this time around, you are equal—no better, no lesser—to the birds that take flight amidst the clouds or the seals that fly under the waves. This is my philosophy, and I have thankfully met many others who feel the same.
So the seal hunt, and humanity’s barbarism in general, cannot end until we all awaken to the fact that we are not better. Just equals. And there is nothing wrong with that. Only in equality and openness can we find harmony and balance.
- Lisa Selvaggio
And the seal numbers dwindle. So what comes next? What comes after we have exhausted the population until it is no more? What will we target, for our fashion, for our superstitions? In the meantime, the animals are used as products of a “free market,” treated as though their skin doesn’t feel the pain of the hook blade piercing through one end and out the other; as if their brains cannot comprehend death, nor their nervous systems the fear; treated as if their blood is not like the blood of a human’s, piping through an intricate system of organs and tissue to sustain the body that, in many ways, exceeds the abilities of humans. The pup is picked up, slammed to the ground until it is unconscious, clubbed until the spirit leaves the vessel behind. Hundreds of thousands at a time.
Yet, people wonder why we treat one another with such hatred, why there’s so much negativity in this world, why we cannot find peace, why our lives continue to get harder, why the animals fear us, why the environment is struggling to sustain us. It is because we find it necessary to dominate, not just the planet, not just the wild, but each other. Sexism, racism, speciesism are all connected, even though some people will argue that they’re not. They’re all connected because they all boil down to the same common notion that, although we are all equal—just spirits or energies taking on different bodily forms upon this plane of existence—we are different, and one gender is better than the other, or one race is stronger than another, or one animal is less deserving of life than another.
In the end, no matter what form of life your spirit chose to manifest in this time around, you are equal—no better, no lesser—to the birds that take flight amidst the clouds or the seals that fly under the waves. This is my philosophy, and I have thankfully met many others who feel the same.
So the seal hunt, and humanity’s barbarism in general, cannot end until we all awaken to the fact that we are not better. Just equals. And there is nothing wrong with that. Only in equality and openness can we find harmony and balance.
- Lisa Selvaggio
Thursday, April 7, 2011
A Dysfunctional Family?
Headlines abound with horrific tales of animal cruelty. There is the dog who got his head sliced off by a chainsaw, the starved dog thrown down a garbage chute, the cat that was dipped in tar whose nose and mouth were burned off. These stories seem unreal, straight out of a horror movie, but the unfortunate truth is that they are real, and these kinds of things happen every day in every part of the world. If you have enough animal activists and rescues on your Facebook page, you’re sure to see a steady stream of nightmarish headlines all day every day, right there alongside the “urgent” animals found in shelters across America whose hours are numbered if they’re not pulled in time. We sit hopelessly at our computer screens wondering what more we can do besides spread the news, donate funds and supplies, and, if possible, rescue animals ourselves. How can we influence politicians to make and enforce laws that are there for the protection of animals? How can we make sure that the abusers are put to justice; that someday animal abusers will be punished the same way “people abusers” are? How can we wake up more people to the fact that all animals are sentient beings?
One scary element of the animal rights movement is the various factions within it. For a movement that is working toward establishing rights for all animals and ending speciesism across the globe, we sure do know how to fight with one another.
Recently, Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, FL came under fire when news hit that they were feeding live domesticated rabbits to the big cats. Videos on YouTube showed the big cats, including lions, tigers, and bobcats, eating dead rabbits or chasing after live ones, and Carole Baskin, the founder of BCR, went on the news to state that they do indeed breed rodents such as rats and rabbits to be used for food and training purposes prior to releasing some of the cats. Apparently, BCR has a shady past (read what Baskin admitted herself here). As someone who donated to and visited the sanctuary, I was very interested in finding out some information on Baskin and the creation of her sanctuary. What I found was information that led me to believe she created the sanctuary after having had the land for her own personal collection of exotics. Whether she had a change of heart or she had a change in her business plan, it is news that makes you question who these people really are and what their true intentions were and still are. Plenty of non-profits, large and small, have been exposed for their lies and secrets, and they don’t always prove themselves as genuine as they would like to seem. Nevertheless, I digress, as my personal opinion of BCR is not relevant to the argument I’m trying to make here.
As soon as word spread that docile, tame rabbits were being fed to the cats, “rabbit groups” started attacking BCR and anyone who supports the organization at this point. Vegans started calling the rabbit rescuers crazy, negating any claims they made and immediately assuming incorrectly that they wanted the cats to be fed a vegetarian or vegan diet. Of course, there was the argument that these meat-eaters were only fighting for the rights of the cuddly rabbits, ignoring the needs of the big cats.
The big cat vs. rabbits debate is just one example of clashes that occur regularly within the AR movement. While real abuse is going on, we fight each other from within, wasting precious time. While we debate one another, we should be debating non-vegans or people working in industries that exploit animals. While we sit on Facebook watching the newsfeed for updates on our last comment, we should be educating ourselves on ways to make a difference for animals. In the end, we’re all in this together; we’re all working towards the same goal. It’s necessary to call out an organization that is unjustly profiting (read: exploiting the animals in its supposed care) from trusting donors, and it’s important to really research an organization to make sure it really does have integrity, but where do we draw the line and reach a compromise? At what point will BCR understand that perhaps it isn’t right to feed live rabbits that are domesticated as pets to big cats when there are alternatives? At what point will people who fight for domesticated animals recognize the need to go vegan and fight for all animals, not just the ones you can keep at home? And at what point will they understand that animal rescue, when it comes to wild animals and obligate carnivores, is not easy and certainly a double-edged sword when it comes to vegans doing the rescuing? We sometimes have to put our own needs aside to make sure the animals are receiving the diet, lifestyle, and care they need.
I don’t have the answers to these problems. All I know is that, many times, the problem with the AR movement is that it involves people, and until we truly come together and stop fighting with each other, no progress will be made. Whether it is a rat, a lion, a seal, a cow, or a dog, every animal deserves to have rights that protect it from abuse and bring the abusers to justice. That is the ultimate goal and we should stay focused on that. I’m sure we can all name organizations whose practices we don’t agree with. Again, while it’s important to call them out on their hypocrisy or poor decision-making as we educate others about these issues, if they are doing something positive in the grand scheme of things, we should be trying to get them to change their ways by approaching them in a kind and mature fashion, not by attacking them with insults and creating disharmony.
Because while we bicker amongst one another, another animal is beaten to death, another is sent to slaughter within days of its birth, and another is skinned alive. And all the arguing was for naught. It’s time the AR movement got its priorities straight and focused on getting out there and doing something positive rather than sitting behind a computer screen arguing for days over a social networking site. In the end, it’s all for the animals and it’s up to us, measly humans, to save them. - Lisa Selvaggio
(Originally Posted 3/21/11)
For the Animals...Sanctuary
Winter on the mountains always seems to arrive more swiftly than below. The Autumn slinks away without a fight, taking with it the last remaining shreds of warmth, leaving behind the desolate trees against the gray-colored sky. I am at For the Animals Sanctuary in Blairstown, NJ, filming the animals enjoying the open space of their pasture for a documentary I am helping with that will give them a voice, tell their stories of horror and eventual rescue. Before long, my gloved fingers and my toes go numb from the frigid morning. Filming will have to stop now that the flurries have started to descend. The animals seem unaffected but I am clearly not built for this.
In the few visits I have made thus far to the sanctuary, it has become clear just how much work is involved in caring for farm animals. It’s an endless task that, once finished, has to be started over again. The barns need to be kept clean, food and water provided, the waste cleared away, and all the other obvious chores you would imagine. The animals are in need of constant care, including medication and maintenance, such as trimming of hooves. In addition, the cows are extremely powerful and could injure a human with ease if they chose to, so one must be aware and respectful towards these creatures by approaching with caution. As a vegan, the idea of owning an animal sanctuary is always appealing because the heart is in the matter and you want to do all you can to be a part of these animals’ lives. But reality certainly hits—a gut check, so to speak—when you see exactly what goes into running a place like this. Would I be cut out for this kind of work? Not at this point in my life, that’s for sure. And that kind of honesty is okay. I can help the animals in countless other ways. But in this honesty, I also find that I have an immeasurable level of respect for Debbie and Steve, the owners of the sanctuary, who have devoted their lives to these animals.
Although For the Animals is small and relatively new (having been founded in 2007) compared to other larger, more well known sanctuaries, with ten goats, three cows, one bull, four pigs, and four hens, it is a full-time job. Debbie and Steve run fundraisers throughout the year and host work parties, days on which volunteers can help clean out the stables and provide some much needed help, but other than that, all the work is done exclusively by themselves. There are no vacations in sight now that they share their home with rescued farm animals who cost thousands of dollars per month to maintain and who can only be properly cared for by this husband-and-wife team. They both work full-time jobs, even though Steve could easily retire, in order to have enough of their own money to fund the sanctuary aside from relying on donations.
Farms litter the landscape leading up to the sanctuary—farms that feature cows grazing that will be sent to slaughter. A group of Black Angus cattle are spotted as I ride past, and I note a baby, probably only a couple of weeks old, sitting in the grass. He or she won’t last long. Debbie and Steve can vouch for the uninterrupted rotation of animals as they are seen for a short period of time before never being seen again. In contrast, the constancy of the handful of animals at the sanctuary is comforting, especially as you get to know their unique personalities and quirks, whether it’s Amy sneaking up behind you and gently nudging you or Hope licking your hand with her thick pink tongue, and I do hope that Steve and Debbie will be able to rescue many more. Because I cannot forget the calf, resting in the grass, his lovely black coat, his small frame. I cannot ignore his fate.
The selfless work that Debbie and Steve do is beyond commendable. There are no words to show my appreciation for their dedication and ability to start this completely from scratch and learning along the way. That’s what it means, though, to be a true vegan: to take your lifestyle a giant leap forward, into hands-on care of the sick, the outcast, the nearly dead brought back to life. People on the frontline like Steve and Debbie are inspiring and deserve all the help they can get, because they are heroes, not only to the animals but to fellow vegans seeking justice for the voiceless.
- Lisa Selvaggio
*Please click here to learn more about the "For the Animals Sanctuary Documentary" and to donate to the project.
The selfless work that Debbie and Steve do is beyond commendable. There are no words to show my appreciation for their dedication and ability to start this completely from scratch and learning along the way. That’s what it means, though, to be a true vegan: to take your lifestyle a giant leap forward, into hands-on care of the sick, the outcast, the nearly dead brought back to life. People on the frontline like Steve and Debbie are inspiring and deserve all the help they can get, because they are heroes, not only to the animals but to fellow vegans seeking justice for the voiceless.
- Lisa Selvaggio
*Please click here to learn more about the "For the Animals Sanctuary Documentary" and to donate to the project.
(Originally Posted 12/4/10)
Herbie, a Bull with Balls
“The will to live will always outweigh the ability to die.” – Brent Smith
There's tranquility here, atop the rolling hills that give way to the mountains stretching across the horizon. It is Autumn, and the green grass is blanketed with fallen leaves of orange, brown, gold. The animals move along at a slow pace, feeding and basking in the warmth of the morning sun. Daylight is shorter now and grazing will become sparse soon. Herbie, white curls on his forehead, gallops down the hill, head swinging, legs kicking, into the open field. As a dog would, he goes after a ball or broken tree branches. With each hop and stride you can feel the earth beneath tremble, yet he bounces along unaffected, unhindered. His personality shines at moments like these. Like a child, he plays, knowing that he is free, with nothing to fear at For the Animals Sanctuary.
Herbie has a fire in his eyes that’s almost palpable; something that draws you in. He looks back at you while feasting on his hay, the playful calf inside subdued temporarily, and you know that he is sure of his salvation, because he created his salvation. When the slaughterhouse-bound truck he was on broke down and the workers were frantically transferring the animals to another truck, he knew to run. And he ran through the streets of Brooklyn, NY because he knew that he needed to get away, that that truck was not bringing him to a safe place. Did the other cows on the truck know it too? Did they try but fail to get away? Were they too afraid to attempt what Herbie did?
Public outcry helped save Herbie. After all, a bull that shows such zeal, that takes his own life “by the horns,” deserves to be placed on a sanctuary and not sent to the very slaughterhouse he avoided with his own instincts. But what about the others? Did the people who were in support of saving Herbie think about the others that would inevitably die? Did they consider that all of the animals on that truck were equals, and that all of them should be saved? Did they think about converting their lifestyles to a vegan one that would save more animals just like Herbie? Or did they think that only this daring bull was worth it?
Herbie is proof that these animals are conscious, aware beings. They know that there is something better for them outside of the factory farm. They know that they deserve better. And they’re willing to fight for it, to take risks for it. In the end, they are no different from any human being, whose intuition and instinct tells them when they are in danger, who run from a scary place to find safety, who want to live and are willing to risk everything for that one shot in hell that could get them to the other side that looks so much greener than here.
Herbie was a 4-month-old calf at the time he ran for his life. There are people who are so dissatisfied with their lives, long into adulthood, that never have the courage to change their situations, whether it’s for fear of failure, for financial reasons, or for sheer uncertainty as to what their purpose is. But Herbie knew he had to run. He knew he couldn’t trust those people. And now he knows that he is happy and has nothing to fear as he grazes in the open field among his companions. In a way, he epitomizes the “stubborn bull.” In the end, he found himself a wonderful life. When the sun sets, he rests in the warmth of tomorrow.
If only more individuals would be able to hear Herbie’s story or see him in person at For the Animals Sanctuary. Perhaps they would decide to cease consuming animal products and turn to a plant-based diet that promotes life instead of suffering and death. If only they would be inspired by his fearlessness and let go of their false convictions about diet and health and take that step toward helping others like Herbie live. If only everyone was brave enough to let go of everything they thought they knew and replace it with Truth so that farm animals would be recognized as the sentient beings they are.
Herbie saved himself. Now it’s up to us to save the rest.
- Lisa Selvaggio
(Originally Posted 11/25/10)
Amy
There was no use for her; she would only be a financial burden. Her bond with her mother and her twin broken, her fate was to die on a veal farm, to become some human’s unnatural meal. At three weeks, still helpless, Amy was abandoned in isolation at the back of a dark, cold stall, denied food, water, safety, and comfort. She would never feel the gentle touch of her mother’s nose, nor be able to drink her mother’s milk, made for her and her alone. Everything that was her birthright had been robbed from her, and she, infertile and therefore unable to be forced into a life of artificial inseminations and successive heartbreaks to fulfill the selfish farmer’s desire for dairy, would be sent to slaughter. It didn’t matter if she starved, it didn’t matter that she was severely malnourished and dehydrated, dying slowly, because she would not be able to turn a large enough profit. She was a defective product that would be thrown away. Her needs and feelings were not a concern to the farmer, yet she was just a baby, all alone in a harsh, concrete world that showed no remorse.
Even though Amy is safe now, having been rescued just in time by For the Animals Sanctuary in New Jersey, and even though she now gets to smell the air as the seasons change and bask in the warmth of the sun while lying in the grass, the truth remains: that countless others like her have met and will meet the fate that she so narrowly avoided. And although she has found a companion to comfort her at her sanctuary, another cow named Hope who was saved from slaughter after she could no longer produce milk, the fact can never be forgotten: that she will never know her family even though she is a creature that thrives upon those bonds. We can question what happened to her mother and her twin, but we know the horrific answer.
Amy—all of Amy: her strong body, her gentle eyes, her endearing spirit—was thrown away as though she didn’t have a soul, as if she didn’t have a right to exist, and she was going to end up crowded into a truck where she would barely be able to move (if she would even have had the strength to stand), was going to be forced into a line that would lead her to a bullet through the head and a slashing open of her neck. Her skin would have been torn off and her limbs would have been sectioned off, and little by little, you would no longer be able to recognize her. Her flesh would be packaged, possibly mixed with the flesh of other cows, and treated to appear fresher to the unknowing and/or uncaring consumer who would find her on his dinner plate.
Amy—all of Amy: her strong body, her gentle eyes, her endearing spirit—was thrown away as though she didn’t have a soul, as if she didn’t have a right to exist, and she was going to end up crowded into a truck where she would barely be able to move (if she would even have had the strength to stand), was going to be forced into a line that would lead her to a bullet through the head and a slashing open of her neck. Her skin would have been torn off and her limbs would have been sectioned off, and little by little, you would no longer be able to recognize her. Her flesh would be packaged, possibly mixed with the flesh of other cows, and treated to appear fresher to the unknowing and/or uncaring consumer who would find her on his dinner plate.
But Amy was one of the very few lucky ones, a tiny fraction of a percentage of all the ones who are slaughtered every minute of every day. You can visit Amy now, safe and sound at For the Animals. Almost one year old, she has grown and flourished, and will continue to do so. When you look at her, you can see the faces of all the cows just like her that are harmless, innocent, and simply crave to live their lives as Nature intends.
But what is most amazing is the fact that in her eyes there is no hatred for mankind, there is no fear as you approach her and stroke the softness of her black and white coat. Apparently, she has forgiven the whole of humanity and has chosen not to hold a grudge, choosing instead to focus on the caring saviors who brought her here and the visitors who come to connect with her. We find it extremely difficult to forgive our transgressors, but this cow, who, from the moment of her birth, knew nothing but hate and evil at the hands of humans, is gentle and welcoming. She has forgiven humanity for everything I cannot. Her concern now is to enjoy life, letting go of the past and focusing on the warm, safe future ahead of her. If only I could do as she has done. But I am not a cow, I am a human, and as such, I know nothing of unconditional love or true freedom or genuine forgiveness. Amy embodies all of these things, thanks to her rescuers, who unselfishly provide for her and the other lucky ones at their sanctuary. And until all animals are safe and free, Amy will be a reminder of what could and should be.
But what is most amazing is the fact that in her eyes there is no hatred for mankind, there is no fear as you approach her and stroke the softness of her black and white coat. Apparently, she has forgiven the whole of humanity and has chosen not to hold a grudge, choosing instead to focus on the caring saviors who brought her here and the visitors who come to connect with her. We find it extremely difficult to forgive our transgressors, but this cow, who, from the moment of her birth, knew nothing but hate and evil at the hands of humans, is gentle and welcoming. She has forgiven humanity for everything I cannot. Her concern now is to enjoy life, letting go of the past and focusing on the warm, safe future ahead of her. If only I could do as she has done. But I am not a cow, I am a human, and as such, I know nothing of unconditional love or true freedom or genuine forgiveness. Amy embodies all of these things, thanks to her rescuers, who unselfishly provide for her and the other lucky ones at their sanctuary. And until all animals are safe and free, Amy will be a reminder of what could and should be.
- Lisa Selvaggio
(Originally Posted 11/14/10)
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